Page 47 of Sinner's Fury

Looking at the phone, I said, “Hello?”

“You are not my daddy.”

“No, sweetie, I’m not. Can I speak with your daddy?”

“Brianna, Dad is going to be mad. Give me that phone!”

“NO!” the little girl screamed. “I talk to the lady!”

“DAD!” the other girl screeched loudly.

“What?” a gruff male voice groaned in the background.

“Bri has one of your phones and won’t give it back.”

“The nice lady talk to me, not you!”

“Brianna, give me the phone. Now,” her father sternly said.

“But, Daddy, the lady talk to me!” the little girl cried.

The next thing I heard was a firm, “Who the hell is this?”

Muttering, I whispered, “My name is Carly Mitchell. I’m looking for Shame. Is he there?”

Silence.

Dead silence.

Removing the phone from my ear, I looked at it to make sure I still had a connection. Placing it back to my ear, I muttered, “Hello. Are you still there?”

“Yes,” the man said. “Yes, I am.”

“Can I please speak with Shame?”

“Carly, my name is Christian Moreno. I know you don’t know me, but I need you to tell me where you are.”

“What?” I stiffened, looking around the apartment.

“Shame is dead.”

Quickly ending the call, I threw the phone on the couch as if it scalded me. Looking around the apartment, I didn’t know what to do. Shame told me to stay put until he could safely move us to a new location. The last time I spoke to him, he told me he was setting everything up.

But that was months ago.

Shit.

I didn’t know what to do.

I didn’t know who to call. Who to trust.

Rushing over to the apartment door, I made sure the deadbolts were in place when I heard the phone ringing. Spinning around, I stared at the phone on the couch before I slowly moved toward it. With a shaking hand, I picked it up, then flipped it open, automatically connecting the call.

Tentatively, I whispered, “Hello? Shame?”

“No, it’s me again,” the man from earlier said. “I apologize for being abrasive, and you were right to lock the apartment. There are several people looking for you.”

Looking around, I whispered, “How did you know I did that?”

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